Rosales Calls for Unity After Elections

MANILA, June 11, 2010- Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales issued an Independence Day call for unity after Benigno Aquino III was proclaimed president.

Rosales said the public should do away things that divide the nation and instead focus on things that could push the country forward.

"This is my prayer as we celebrate our Independence Day and the entry of the country's next leaders," Rosales said over church-run Radyo Veritas.

He also insists that instead of sourgraping, candidates who did not make it should concede, accept their fate and cooperate with new leaders.

For him, the success of the new government does not lie solely in the hands of officials but is a concerted effort among Filipinos.

The archbishop called on those who have won in the recent election to prove their worth and do what they have promised during their campaign.

"Those who have been chosen to lead the country, I just hope that they recognize their responsibilities and they should remember that they are doing them not for themselves but for the country," he said.

There should be "no more divisions" such as different party affiliations or different religious beliefs, he added.

Cardinal Rosales also urged all leaders and the public to exercise tolerance and to respect others' fundamental rights and freedoms.

He said it was important that people should learn from each other's ideas so that they could be able to find common ground on the issues affecting the nation to help the Philippines prosper. (Roy Lagarde/CBCPNews)